Lil’ Guardsman PS5 Review. I remember a very fond time I and a colleague had, at work, playing Papers Please. It scratched an itch like no other game I had played before and was thoroughly entertaining. So what happens if you wrap a point-and-click game, with a lovely aesthetic around the same core concept? You get Lil’ Guardsman developed by Hilltop Studios and published by Versus Evil and tinyBuild.
Lil’ Guardsman Review (PS5) – Comedic Child Labour
Papers Please?
In Lil’ Guardsman, you play Lil, a very sassy and extremely entertaining 12-year-old girl. She gets wrapped up in a story of intrigue, shady tactics and the narrative covers a wide gamut of interesting topics. I adored the writing and story in this game; it’s entertaining from start to finish and kept me smiling throughout. It all starts when you cover your dad’s shift at the city gate and branches out from there.
This is where Papers Please makes a mechanistic cameo. While at the gate, you have to decide whether to let a queue of people into your lovely city, called ‘The Sprawl’ or not. You have to use various tools at your disposal and suss out each uncanny citizen and find out what their deal is.
The breath and wealth of visitors you have at the game is amazing. From Disney-style singing princesses that turn out to be murderers to 8-bit Harvest Moon characters that have inherited a farm, everyone that turns up is a mystery to be solved and I found the whole thing magical. Especially the stoned wizard that made an appearance! He was brilliant.
Tools of the Trade
For every character that shows up, you have three actions to take. From x-ray scanners to whips and from metal detectors and just using questions, each character is a puzzle to be solved and you are scored for each one accordingly. For example, after listening to stoned Galndalf waffle on for ages about nonsense, I decided he was safe to let in but only got two stars. The second time around, I whipped him and loads of weed fell out of his robe. Which I confiscated and sold to the peddler later on. A win-win in my book.
All the tools you can use to grill these fools are selected before each shift. You need to buy charges and they can also be upgraded too. This is where your rating for the day comes into play and selling any contraband you find, is vital to further success. As is the use of your trusty magical egg timer, which lets you rewind a few times a day. Very, very helpful indeed.
Real Consequences
One thing I loved was the fact that your decisions matter and what happened during your shift affects the rest of the game. For example, a budding shopkeeper you let in could set up shop in your town and a sports superstar you allow through could help the local team win. Your jaunts between your shifts are also vital to moving the story forward and seeing this hilarious tale unfold.
After your shift you are presented with a map and are allowed to talk to characters, further the narrative and prepare for the next working day. These little interactions are fantastic and really lend weight to what you are doing and give you a purpose. Plus, as I mentioned above, the whole game is so well written and funny, that, unlike some games, I hung on to every conversation and interaction.
All-round Beauty
From a presentation standpoint, this game is bright and beautiful. It has that Saturday morning cartoon look that just drips character and joy. It’s the same with the sound side of things too, every character is so well voice-acted and brilliantly written that I believed everything that was said, I identified heavily with the protagonist and got completely immersed in this kooky world.
Technically, the game runs like butter. I know, I know, it’s only a point-and-click style offering with very little stress under the hood but still, it was tested and it is very well made. I had no issues or bugs whatsoever and luckily, nothing ever dragged me out of this world I was enjoying so, so much.
It stole a Lil’ Piece of my Heart
As you can probably tell, I cherished Lil’ Guardsman. I seem to have reached a point in my life where I have played enough cut-and-paste titles and really enjoy the novel, unique things the indie space offers. Lil’ Guardsman is like nothing else I have played bar Papers Please and it’s still quite different to that.
This game oozes in character, is massively entertaining and made me laugh constantly. The characters are great, the graphics are beautiful and above all, it’s a great, unique title that I think most people will enjoy. I really wish we had more games like this and I am so happy there are people making video games of this ilk. Right, I am off to whip more fools trying to sneak contraband into my yard!
Lil’ Guardsman is now available for PS5 and PS4.
Review code kindly provided by the publisher.